NJ bistro owner has his own Super Bowl day

Some business owners eagerly await Christmas or Halloween or Valentine's Day.

WAYNE WITKOWSKI

Some business owners eagerly await Christmas or Halloween or Valentine's Day.

But for chef Jean Luis Todeschini of Buckwood Bistro on 84 Route 46 in Delaware, N.J., this Tuesday has been his biggest and best singular day of business.

It's Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent for Christians around the world. It's also the last day for indulgence in favorite foods for many who fast during the 40-day season.

And capturing the spirit of New Orleans where Mardi Gras is celebrated that day, Todeschini will hold his own annual celebration starting at 3 p.m. that day complete with Cajun and Creole style food as he has done there since he opened Buckwood Bistro five years ago. He also celebrated Mardi Gras at his prior restaurant — LaBerge in Wayne, N.J. — where he cooked for 26 years.

"We'll roll out the gumbo, the jambalaya and catfish etoufee," said Todeschini. "We have zydeco music, tons of masks and tons of decorations and tons of beads."

His thick French accent gives away that he is clearly in his element preparing food in the tradition of the Acadian culture, the French colonists who settled in the 17th century in eastern Canada's Maritime provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island that was known as New France before migrating to Louisiana where they were known as Cajuns.

"I love the Mardi Gras and love the food," Todeschini said. "I get so excited. I talk to people and they say the food is spicy and I love it but not all Cajun food is spicy. Jambalaya is not hot."

A native of Conte, France, where he did his culinary apprenticeship, Todeschini said he draws regular clientele from the Poconos, particularly the Stroudsburg area that is a 20-minute drive, and from as far as 60 miles away in Passaic and Mercer counties in New Jersey. Buckwood Bistro also is a member of the Greater Pocono Chamber of Commerce and chamber President and CEO Bob Phillips has said that he has made it a point to make it a regular stop for lunches.

Many other restaurants in the area offer Creole styled dishes such as shrimp etoufee and the ever popular Cajun dish jambalaya that was the title of a hit song. Entrees often have blackened catfish that is seasoned with the unmistakeably hot cayenne seasoning. Many dishes are served with seafood and andouille hot, linked sausages and rice with beans that some nickname "dirty rice."

But Todeschini harkens from his training for appetizers and entrees that he says are true to the flavor of that culture. He prides himself on his gumbo, a tasty broth usually mixed with seafood, meat and poultry and vegetables, and just about any other popular dish of that culture.

"This place is the original around here. We have all the spice, all the stuff to get into that kind of cooking," he said. "People from New Orleans came to my place in Wayne and they said, 'This is the real thing.' They didn't want to go back to eat there."

For some, it is their first taste of this type of food. He said jambalaya is the most ordered dish and can really satisfy nearly every hungry customer.

"We have many customers who have come in but many have never been exposed to it before," Todeschini said. "I wish they knew out there how good it is and it's a great deal, a great value. New Orleans is about flavor and abundance and fantastic tasting."

Todeschini worked early in his career at St. Moritz, Switzerland, and came to the United States in 1969 at age 23, going first to Vermont and also to Montreal before coming to New York where he helped open La Cirque restaurant on Park Avenue in uptown Manhattan in 1974 where he was the executive chef after relocating from Montreal. "I wanted to go to New York because that's the place to be," he said.

Five years later, Todeschini seized the opportunity to have his own restaurant at La Berge, but bought a farm just down the road from Buckwood Bistro. Thousands of driving miles later, Todeschini's career took a detour to just a much shorter drive from his home and he grows some of the vegetables served with his entrees.

Along with the Cajun and Creole offerings, he offers entrees of various price ranges that include the higher priced mustard-crusted rack of lamb, seafood mare chiara, steak au poivre and veal gourmande as well as chicken breast rollentine, old-fashioned chicken fricasee, shrimp provencal, double-cut pork chop and roast salmon. His soup usually includes French onion, of course. There also are a wide variety of internationally seasoned appetizers and a children's menu.

Buckwood Bistro recently added a pizza section to the menu with a variety of toppings.